Latest head-in-sand idea: Arming the teachers

The cellphones in Tim Kane's class at Summit High School in Phoenix all seemed to start buzzing at once. It was Friday.

"In my government class, I encourage students who have their parents' permission to get a Twitter account because of the tie-ins to so many news sources," Kane said. "In class that day, the phones all started vibrating at once, and the all students started looking at them. It was the first word about the shooting in Connecticut."

Kane was among several educators I've heard from this week.

In addition to the horror and the sorrow that each of them feels, the teachers spoke of the need to make sure schools have adequate safety procedures.

And more than a few, like Kane, reacted to the suggestion that teachers or school administrators be armed.

"Any security plan has to have a lethal component," Kane said, "but arming teachers has to be the last thing.

"To me, it would have to be a voluntary program, perhaps something that schools could get some type of grant to pay for. And it would involve a lot of training."

Kane started teaching six years ago after he got out of the Army. If his school offered the chance to train as an armed responder in an emergency situation, he would take it.

"I own weapons. I've always had one," he said. "I don't carry. I don't think it's necessary. But if the option were there to do something like that in a school, I'd want to see what type of training was available."

Are we going to put teachers in a position to be armed and make sure to train them properly?

Will they understand how to deal with things like crowd control?

Risk assessment?

Target acquisition?

"There are a lot of things that go into something like this, and there would be a lot of responsibility to have an armed teacher in a school. If done properly, it could add another layer of security.

"But there are many questions that have to be resolved. All these things would have to be looked at. Still, the idea should be on the table."

He's right.

In the aftermath of a massacre that left 20 first-graders and six women dead at a school, everything must be on the table.

Dan Gross, president of the Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence, has called the notion of armed teachers "insane."

Another of those who disagree with the idea is former school administrator John Laidlaw of Tempe.

He wrote to me saying, "As a former elementary principal for 25 years, I don't think that most elementary teachers would favor being armed. ... These nuts that want everyone armed have probably never spent time in an elementary school since they were kids, and most have sent their own kids to private schools.

"A better solution would be to have at least one trained and armed police officer at every elementary school. Also, custodians could be used if properly trained to provide backup security as they usually have carts that could contain a weapon.

"I do not favor asking any teacher or administrator to become an armed guard, as that is not what they trained to do.

"Custodians would have to be paid more and have higher qualifications, of course."

A lot of people like the idea of posting uniformed police officers in each school.

But how many towns or school districts could afford it?

At the same time, we'll have to decide if assault weapons with 30-round magazines should be available.

And we'll have to determine if there are holes in the mental-health system that allow the wrong people to have access to weapons.

And we'll have to ask the politicians we elect to stand up to the gun lobby's money and the influence that has stifled common-sense firearm legislation.

Former Principal Laidlaw said, "Nothing can make schools perfectly safe, as the national Capitol is kept. It is obvious that Congress is more concerned about their own security than about schoolchildren."